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Asia-Pacific
Man Convicted of Trafficking a 17-year-old Boy from Myanmar into Forced Labor in Bangkok
November 8, 2024, BANGKOK, THAILAND — On November 5, 2024, one Burmese perpetrator was convicted of forced labor and trafficking a 17-year-old Burmese boy from Myanmar to work in Thailand. “I feel that the Thai court has delivered justice in the ruling of my case. I am still deeply hoping that I will be compensated for my unpaid wages, but the sentencing and punishment of my employer’s actions will serve as an example for it not to be repeated to anyone else,” the survivor shared to IJM staff after the conviction.
Bought from his parents to work for approximately 10,000 baht by his employer, the boy was transported from his hometown in Mawlamyine, Myanmar, in a white van around midnight to Myawaddy, a town in Myanmar bordering Thailand, before crossing to Mae Sot, Thailand. After crossing, three women joined the group, bringing the total to seven people in one car, seated tightly together on their way to Bangkok.
The boy’s ordeal began under the control of a 30-year-old man who would physically assault him when he failed to meet daily sales targets for selling roti bread in a local market. He only found out that his working status was illegal upon arriving at his employer’s house in Min Buri, a district in Bangkok. During his first ten days, he was taught to make roti bread and then was instructed to sell it alone on the streets near Min Buri Market. The number of rotis he had to sell increased each day, forcing him to return from work later and later than usual. Most of the time, when he failed to sell all the roti bread or made mistakes at the house of his employer where he stayed, he got whipped with a phone charging cord and rubber hose.
For six months, the boy was forced to work selling roti from 4 p.m. up to 2-3 a.m. every day without ever receiving any pay and without enough food to eat himself. Enduring daily threats and beatings was part of his daily routine. The perpetrator warned the boy not to escape unless he wanted to get arrested by police as an undocumented migrant.
Unable to bear the abuse any longer, he finally confided in a neighbor who believed him after seeing his bruises and having witnessed one of the times the perpetrator beat the victim before. He finally was able to report the abuse to the police and was then transferred to a government shelter after being identified as a victim of trafficking.
On June 13, 2024, IJM Thailand received a request from the government trafficking in persons victim shelter in Pathum Thani province to assist and collaborate in the aftercare, interpretation, and repatriation support for the survivor. The shelter and IJM’s legal team then interviewed the survivor on June 17, 2024. With the boy’s choice to pursue the case in court and the case progressing, we provided him with the necessary legal support.
The boy’s employer was arrested, charged with human trafficking and forced labor under Thailand’s Anti-Human Trafficking Act Sections 6 and 6/1 and on November 5, 2024, and found guilty on both counts. The conviction was supported by evidence of his involvement in recruiting the survivor, which included buying him from his parents, illegally transporting him to Thailand from Myanmar, and exploiting the boy for profit by selling roti and subjecting him to repeated physical abuse. The suspect’s initial sentence was eight years. However, in keeping with Thai court practices, because the perpetrator pleaded guilty, the sentence was reduced by the judge to four years and three months. Fines in punishment amounted to 640,190 THB (approximately 18,800 USD).
Currently, the boy is waiting to return to Myanmar. “I would like to thank the court and the government shelter who took good care of me. I would also like to thank IJM who supported me throughout the legal case and provided assistance during the process,” he said, knowing that he would not have to face the recovery from these traumatic experiences alone and was now safe and protected, with his trafficker now convicted and jailed.
